RECREATIOIsi AND HOLIDAYS
By ALFRED COX AMUSIC - HALL philosopher of my younger days used to ask " Why work when you are in good health ? " a question" which was received enthusiastically and hilariously by his audience. We have been so accustomed to regard work as the primeval curse, JO be avoided whenever possible, that we are apt to forget that work is an essential factor . in the maintenance of bodily and mental harmony: . But with work, 'itS- with diet, monotony tends, to become intolerable : mind and body revolt; and, Unless opportunity be given not only for relaxation but for the recreation of the physical and mental roachinery, work and health will inevitably suffer.
ReCreation then is means by which we escape from the groove, throw off the mental and, physical weariness die to work and domestic cares, and thereby preserve our capacity for happiness. It is both a necessity and a luxury, a'ad its forms are as varied' as are our temperaments ; and fortunately many are both simple and cheap.. Recrea- tion must be distinguished from physical culture. It 'flay or may not include physical exercise,' but it is essen- tial that there be nothing .compulsory or standardised about it. The " Hitlerisation " of spare time may be good for deVeloping the body, or :for- promoting national Pride or military spirit, but it 'has little to do with recreation as we understand it. The very essence of recreation is that it shall be a complete contrast to one's Work, that it*can be taken or left as desired, and that it fits in with one's temperainental desires. .The sedentary, worker, especially . when young, , will almost naturally choose as 'a rderea Hon ,something which takes him Out of doors—probably something involving.
PhYSieal exertion, such as', cricket,. football, lawn-tenniS, swimming. .Even the theic looker-on a Such Eames can get a measure of real recreation from them. The pleasures of walking are much underestimated, but it is; for those who are in the know, one of the happiest fornia of recreation. It may, 'of course, be combined. Oh 'an ulterior' object, such as photography,' botany, geology, archaeology. One of the. busiest and happiest men I' know gets nearly all his recreation—and incidentally a.• good deal of exercise—through his zeal for studying the antiquities of the town in which he lives. There is a".' great deal to be said for solitary walking, especially f0.
the man who gets in the course of his dairy routinei. all that he needs of human contact. There are many, however, especially among the younger generation, who, are bored with their own society. For them one can but: advise a congenial companion ; or, if the herd instinct is strongly developed, organised hiking or camping. But the possible forms of recreative hobbies are numerous. There are, for instance, few more satisfying recreationsi than gardening, which is happily becoming once againi popular. An unemployed man told me the other day that if it hadn't been for his allotment he would have com-i mitted suicide—and he meant it.
I doubt whether true recreation can ever be got in al crowd by a townsman. This is not to undervalue thai virtue of occasional excitement for the man whose life is monotonous. But for that refreshment of mind and body with which I am dealing it appears to me that withdrawal from the ordinary.stresses, excitements and noises of daily. life is necessary. Frequent nights in a cinema or in' a ' crowded dance hall may act as a mental dope—but can hardly provide real recreation for one who spends a couple of hours a .day in 'getting -to and from his work in a crowded tram or 'bus, and puts in the rest of the day in a factory or office. Hobbies of all kinds afford effective means of recreation, for they are essentially personal ; taking the mind and body entirely out of the groove, and arousing that splendid drug, enthusiasm. If., the -pursuit of a hobby' entails getting out into the air, so much the better. But whether it be stamp-collecting, photography, fretwork, painting, music, gardening, chess or what you- will, a hobby is every time a hundred per cent. hygienic asset, • A more immediate and obyious effect, may be got from the holiday which takes us right away froth our customary ' environment. In my young days, if we were lucky, we got a week or rt, fortnight every year at the nearest seaside 'place. NOwadays, travelling is cheap, and facilities of all kinds are , available so that, the range of the " gco- , graphical " holiday is much increased. But the man :who quietly goes to the English se oat to e,anbdesdpeesnpdisserd nobsyt of his time in a deck chair, ought the mountaineer, the hiker, or the traveller. He is very likely getting just what he needs most. I am all for foreign travel and for seeing something of other countries and peoples, blit. I doubt if many of us can honestly say that we have seen more than the tiniest fraction of our own country. Within our borders we have a variety of climate and scenery not equalled by any other country in the world. There is " no difficulty in finding in Great Britain customs and People as unfamiliar to us as are those met with in foreign countries. I should like to prescribe for every townsman at least one month's holiday in the real English country: Some of them might be bored at first, but if they-got to know the real country- man, they could hardly fail to return wiser and happier men. Wiser because they would realise the elementary nature of the things on which national life is based-- things about Which the countryman is so knowledgeable ; and happier and more content, because they will have learnt bow much satisfaction can be got out of that simple life about which the townsman talks much but usually knows little.
Still, the holiday trip abroad is, in these dangerous days of reviving national assertiveness, a thing to encourage. The cruise.has its points for those who can be as happy on the • sea as beside it. It has the advantage of affording Presh, air and ever-fresh scenes ; but a word of warning should be given to those who cannot resist the pleasures of the table. Unless neutralised by pretty active exercise, the cruise, which is apt to be one long, good meal, may have temporary physical disadvantages.
To sum up. Recreation essentially consists in doing something " different " and doing it oneself, because one wants to. Beware of things pressed on you by others as being ." good for you."• A fairly long life has Convinced me that, in recreation as in nearly all other things; k‘ one man's meat is another man's poison." •
Previous page
